White Rabbit
by Shadow Verity
Summary: When a person dies, they are presented with three choices: to be reincarnated, move on, or live in an alternate world called Wonderland. In this world there are four kingdoms, which require a system of balance to maintain peace in their land under their deity, the White Rabbit. But what happens if the balance is disrupted? War, revenge and love will hold the fate of Wonderland.
1. Chapter 1

Prelude

_When Death halts the heart's beat_

_And the coffin holds bloodless feet_

_The soul begins to lift and pass_

_Through the eye of the Looking Glass_

_There they meet under memory's shadow_

_Blood red eyes and skin like snow_

_And the soul chooses by the courier's hand_

_To reincarnate_

_Face their fate_

_Or breathe once again in Wonderland_

Part 1: Crack

The date had been set; the plans had been prearranged. The meeting that took place every full moon, or every year in Earth's time, had begun in Wonderland. The rulers of the four kingdoms created a circle in the center of the Lake of Tears, and a princess, who shared a soul with that of a unicorn which was naturally just as sweet and pure as she herself was, stepped forth into the circle.

"My brothers and sisters, we gather here today under the full moon's light and the White Rabbit's shadow to honor a tradition sacred to the balance and well-being of the four kingdoms of Wonderland. I, Edith Clovenna, Princess of the Kingdom of Clubs, speak first in representation of the North."

Next stepped forth a tall empress with lips as red as her eyes, and features as sharp and beautiful as that of her menacing spiked crown.

"I, Lilah March, Empress of the Kingdom of Spades, speak second in representation of the East."

Soon to follow was a duchess so fragile and lovely that her very presence would make even the shyest of flowers bloom to life.

"I, Lorina Liddell, Duchess of the Kingdom of Diamonds, speak third in representation of the South."

The last ruler of this peculiar assemblage was a queen. Her own beauty was not divine or wretched, but honest and wavering as her heart was. One could take into account that she was able to emit a number of emotions; a fact that could distance her heart from her mind, similar to that of a human.

"I, Mary Hargreaves, Queen of the Kingdom of Hearts, speak fourth in representation of the West. In this conclusion of introductions, I ask to be the first to speak of a new announcement."

The rulers complied with her request, "You may speak, sister."

She continued, "It is well known that since the beginning of eternity, each ruler of the four kingdoms has only the duty to raise one child as an heir to the throne. I announce now that that same tradition has seemed to elude the Kingdom of Hearts."

Instant confusion and dread spread between the individuals' minds. The empress, suspecting the worst as the pessimistic mind of a Spade always did, requested further explanation from the queen.

"The King and I have taken great care in monitoring the well-being of my future heir…and in doing so we have discovered that there is not one, but two heartbeats in my womb."

Upon this revelation there were instant gasps and murmurs between all of the rulers. The Prince of Clubs, a handsome young man who shared the soul and bravery of a lion, spoke directly to the Hearts, "Are you certain of this?"

The king spoke next to his queen, "The Queen and I had this confirmed by your own kingdom's head doctor, Balthazar."

The queen spoke with a hint of a smile on her face and hope in her voice, "The White Rabbit has blessed us."

The empress nearly spat at the queen remark, "Cursed more appropriately. Are you really that daft and blind as to not see that your excess child, sister Mary, is a direct threat to the balance of the Wonderland kingdoms?"

The duchess spoke next with a voice as calming as the ripples of a still pond, "Perhaps it is a sign, sister Lilah. Maybe the White Rabbit is trying to tell us all that two children of each kingdom may now take the throne one day."

The emperor, a man as frightening and mystical as his wife, replied to the duchess, "Your theory is one worthy of thought, sister Lorina, but why then would the White Rabbit only create an extra heartbeat in the Queen's womb?"

The king attempted to defend his child's existence, "Our kingdom might find our second child useful and healing…Each day less and less new souls are choosing the Kingdom of Hearts to thrive in…"

The empress did not spit, however if one were looking close enough, they could see the tiny sparks dancing in the back of her throat, "Rubbish! The new souls would more than likely choose your human villages over our black homeland. And with your new second heir, you have even the more power to persuade them into your ruling."

The princess spoke once more, an attempt to calm her rulers with her honeysuckle voice, "Peace, fellow brothers and sisters. We must overlook this peculiar situation in a different manner. It would be wise to, instead of questioning the White Rabbit's motives, ask It ourselves."

There was a brief silence as each ruler paused their bickering for a moment of thought, until the queen revealed her fears in a whisper, "And what action would the Rabbit take then…what if It decides that my baby was a mistake? Would it bring death to my helpless, unborn child?"

The empress muttered her honest, bleak opinion, "Please consider sister, that perhaps death is the only solution to this unbalanced abnormality."

Her words slapped a switch on the queen's heart, and she stared into the empress's eyes. A small threatening wind arose between the two women, and the queen's voice hardened her words, "Now you listen to me, ungrateful, demon sister. If you ever threaten my child again…or even place a finger on their head, whether by your tangible hands or the hands of the dark magic that your kind practices, I vow that your kingdom will perish by my royal blood, and my kingdom's wind."

Silence fell around the rulers. The uncanny breeze produced the only movement between the royals until finally the duke broke the uneasiness, "Now now sister, there should be no need for open threats during this rendezvous. This meeting was meant for rejoice and celebration for our soon to come heirs."

The king placed a soft hand upon the shoulder of his wife, "I agree with brother Matthew. Let us share no more disputes."

The queen shot a surprised and somewhat betrayed gaze at her husband as the princess concluded, "A wise decision brother Anthony. If there is any more news that any ruler here wishes to reveal, that brother or sister may speak now."

None spoke.

"Very well. In the name of the White Rabbit, this full moon rendezvous has officially ended."


	2. Chapter 2

A new moon hid behind its shadow in the twilight Wonderland sky. Thousands upon thousands of stars impatiently strived to shine through the dimly lit dusk. Above each castle of the four kingdoms, two stars shined bright and brilliant in defiance against the fading blue sunlight. Tonight, however, five stars were to born into the wondrous night sky. The date had been set, the plans prearranged, and each of the two confident stars over the kingdoms waited with anticipation of the new star to be born beside them.

Time ticked.

Inside the stone walls of the Kingdom of Spades, the empress's screams echoed through the torch-lit halls. Inside her bedroom she laid in birthing position on her bed; her face red from her rushing blood, and her sheets singed and soaked in scarlet. Her faithful emperor squeezed her hand and urged her to give one final push. The empress sucked in air through gritted teeth and screamed once more; a burst of flames escaping her mouth as her cries echoed through the stone walls of the chamber.

And then her cries ceased.

Horned servants scrambled in mild urgency to suppress the flames from the burning chamber curtains as the empress reached between her blood-covered legs and held her crying daughter in her arms. The royal spade cradled her newly born child and soothed her cries with warm kisses. She looked up at her husband lovingly, and he softly stroked his newly born child's cheek. "What shall we name her?" He whispered to the empress. She looked back down into her sleeping daughter's eyes and replied, "Elizabeth. Elizabeth March."

Up above the stone castle in the midst of the spade kingdom, a third bright star shone through the twilight sky.

Time ticked.

Underneath the glass roof of the diamond castle, the duchess cried puddles of tears as she lay in her bed holding the duke's hand. Between her spread legs her sheets were sodden with ocean blue blood. The duchess cried in pain, and her tears rolled down like nonstop heavy raindrops. Her hair was completely soaked with her sweat, which permeated through her skin like a squeezed sponge. The duke tried desperately to cling on to his wife's hand, which became increasingly more difficult as more and more water coated her skin. There was now a foot of water along the floor of the castle, and white angel-haired servants scrambled with buckets in an attempt to fight the flood. The duchess let out a cry once more, and the water along the castle floor arose to a threatening three feet in depth. The pond splashed and churned into unpredictable waves.

And then the waves turned into calm ripples and the duchess's cries died. The duke gently let go over her hand and made a beckoning motion along the surface of the water. Gentle waves approached the royal diamonds, carrying their crying newborn son along the ripples. The duchess smiled warmly and cradled her son in her arms. "He looks just like his father." She whispered. The duke smiled and gently brushed back his wife's wet hair from her face. The duchess lay a soft kiss upon her son's forehead. "Judas…what an angel."

The boy's cries transformed into soft newborn snores as his mother and father held him in his arms, and above the diamond glass castle shone a third bright star amidst the darkened sky.

Time ticked.

Through the dense brush of the club forest, beneath the wooden haven of the kingdom's castle walls, a voice as soothing as honey whimpered and cried inside the royal chamber. The princess lay on her bed in birthing position, her arms hugging tightly around her husband, the lion's, neck. The prince, in his lion form, licked the princess's shaking hands in an attempt to soothe her pain. The princess groaned and curled her horse hooves in agony. Her white bed sheets were now soaked in moss green liquid, and the princess gripped her husband's mane before letting out one last cry of pain. The ground rumbled and tree roots sprouted from the castle floors. The wooden walls bended and contorted, and the club princess's unicorn glistened atop her forehead as she squeezed her eyes shut.

Suddenly her cries ceased, and with gentle care, the princess opened her eyes and adjusted to the faint light of the dusk moon. Her arms were now around the shoulders of her manly husband as he cradled their crying newborn daughter. The young princess's face was lined with the feathers of a young falcon, and her hands resembled that of lion paws like her father. As the prince cradled her, she fussed mildly with her feet resembling hooves, like her mother's. The princess looked over her child in awe and calm rejoice. "What do you think she is, Esmond?" the princess whispered. The prince responded, "She carries the feathers that my father wore…yet she has my paws and your sweet hooves. She is a hippogriff."

The princess looked at her husband in surprise. "She is part gryphon! She carries the genes of your father." She looked down at her daughter lovingly and softly kissed her cheek. "Spare no tears my daughter," the princess whispered into her ear, "be sweet. Be pure. Be brave, my darling Jade."

The child's cries ceased into a peaceful slumber, and the three clubs embraced each other in love as high above them, a third brilliant star appeared in the twilight sky above the Kingdom of Clubs.

Time ticked.

A towering golden castle stood bravely in the Kingdom of Hearts, and inside the cries of the queen resonated through the walls. She clutched the king tightly as she screamed with all the strength her lungs could muster. Her face was red and damp with sweat. Her hair fluttered about her as a wild wind threatened to become a storm within the chamber. The queen's sheets were stained with her golden yellow blood as she strained to give birth to her two impatient children. She screamed once more and the wild wind grew into a hostile, belligerent tornado within the chamber. The queen's screams echoed all throughout the castle; carried by the winds she produced. Finally the queen ended her cries and sucked in sharp breaths for gritted teeth. Through the sound of her heartbeat ringing in her ears, she heard a distant cry of a newborn baby.

And then…

The queen screamed once more, decibels louder than before. The tornado winds spread throughout the entire golden castle, daring to tear the entire domain to shreds amidst the queen's agony. Servants fled and ducked for cover. Royal rugs and curtains and linens flung in every direction in helpless surrender to the grand tornado.

And then…

The winds stopped. The air was still. Silence was the only scream that rang out in the golden halls.

Inside the royal chamber, the queen lay down on her bed with eyes closed in utter exhaustion. Her ears pounded. Her heart skipped. Her throat throbbed. With a tongue of sandpaper she whispered to her husband, "Anthony…where are my children?"

She felt the king's hand gently escape hers, and she listened to his footsteps along the castle floor. The footsteps halted, and she tried to make sense of the whispers that the king and the servants shared. After a few silent moments, she heard once again her husband's footsteps coming back toward her. They were slow and hesitant; almost dreadful. She sensed his presence as he knelt down beside her and gently kissed her tired lips. She smiled and whispered to him, "Tell me Anthony, do I have two sons? Two girls?"

The king hesitated and spoke very softly to her. "We have…a son…"

The queen smiled and softly laughed with tired lungs. A single tear of joy escaped under her closed eyelid and scurried down her blushed cheek. "And? A girl? A boy?"

The king hesitated once more, but instead of answering her question, the queen heard her husband softly whimper next to her bedside.

"Anthony?..." the queen furrowed her eyebrows in worry and turned her head toward her husband. She opened her eyelids, and from her tired golden eyes looked upon her two newborn children in the king's arms. In his left arm, he cradled their son; sleeping peacefully. And in his right arm, he cradled their second child; motionless in his caress. The king, tears flowing from his eyes, looked into his wife's eyes desperately. His voice broke, "A girl."

The queen stared at her daughter. Unmoving. Unbreathing. She gently took the child into her arms and cradled her. She stroked her soft, cold skin with a gentle finger, and held her daughter's tiny, precious hand. The queen's lips shook as she gently raised her baby girl's hand to her lips and kissed it ever so soflty. Tears streamed down her cheeks in never-ending rivers and dripped silently onto her daughter's limp body.

"Please…please…my Adel…" The queen wailed helplessly in devastation with her lifeless baby girl in her arms. Her heart-wrenching cries echoed through the desolate castle walls and into the twilight sky, where high above the Kingdom of Hearts shone a brilliant third star in the sky.

But not a fourth.

Time ticked.


	3. Chapter 3

There are no storms in Wonderland. Thunder, hail, fog, lightning and rain are nonexistent. There is never a single cloud in the sky. However, the day after the grand births of the four heirs, a strange, ominous breeze made all of Wonderland shudder in its ghostly presence. In the Lake of Tears, there gathered all the people of the Kingdom of Hearts, including the king and queen themselves. The queen shrouded herself in black lace and veils as she mutely stood next to her king, who held a tiny casket with the initials "A.H." carved into the top.

"May your soul rest in peace my loved one. And let the White Rabbit lead you to your path." The King bleakly lowered the casket into the water and let it sink below the surface. A small whirlpool appeared in the lake, surrounding the casket. And once the small coffin disappeared into the darkness of the water, there came a bright beam of rainbow light shooting from the bottom of the lake, swallowing all that remained of the newborn Heart Queen, Adel Hargreaves.

The King took a step back from the center of the lake and took a deep shaky breath. All around them the Hearts people bowed their heads solemnly and headed back toward the kingdom. Eventually all who remained was the King, the Queen, and their only son, Cayden, softly snoring in the Queen's arms. The King finally turned toward his wife and gently took her hand. "'My dear, sunset will be among us soon. Let us return to the castle for a hot cup of tea."

The Queen slowly turned her head to the King. Her once golden irises were now the color of burnt mustard, and underneath her eyes her skin sagged like the wrinkles of a damp dress. Her gaze was empty and emotionless until finally she turned her gaze away from the King and headed off towards the castle. The King stood in the Lake alone, and watched the back of his crestfallen wife's head until she disappeared from his view.

For days on end, the Queen sat alone in the castle study, gazing out the window with empty, pensive eyes. She scarcely ate, slept, bathed, or drank. She did not speak or even look at Cayden or the King. One afternoon she suddenly fell out of her chair. During her fall, she had knocked over a vase of flowers on the table next to her, and servants rushed in to investigate the clatter. The Queen had fainted from starvation. The servants nursed her back to consciousness, yet still the Queen did not speak. Day after day, Cayden cried and begged for attention from his mother. The King persisted in trying to get the Queen to eat something to produce milk for her son. The Queen never turned her gaze from the window. Eventually, the King gave up on arguing with his wife and allowed one of the maids to feed Cayden from her breast. The King endured half a moon's revolution of complete exhaustion. Half a moon's revolution of ruling a kingdom by himself, caring for his son, and worrying about his grief-stricken wife. But on the next full moon's night, the ominous breeze that had haunted the Hearts Kingdom suddenly stopped.

All around the villages, the Hearts people stopped in their tracks and looked to the sky. They sniffed the air, they darted their eyes, and murmurs started to spread throughout the Kingdom.

"The wind…"

"It stopped!"

"The Queen!"

"Is she dead?"

"The wind died…"

Hearts everywhere turned their expressions from surprise to wonder to curiosity to fear. And for a moment, the air was completely still. Silence slithered throughout the kingdom like a sinister serpent. And then that moment ended.

"LILAHHH!"

The golden walls of the castle shuddered with a sharp, violent wind. The air screamed and raged with a single name riding on its turbulence. The King darted inside the study with panic churning through his veins. Inside the castle library he found the Queen standing in front of her window with her hands rolled into tight fists. All around her books, parchment and pens flew in random chaotic motions at the mercy of the Queen's furious tornado. The King screamed, "Mary! What is the matter?"

The Queen slowly turned around to face the King. Her eyes were a livid shade of gold, and her hair mussed and whipped around her reddened face. She hissed at the King, "Lilah…the Empress…_she_ is responsible!"

The King stared at her in fear. He croaked the words, "Do you honestly…suspect-"

"Not _suspect_! I KNOW! SHE WAS JEALOUS! THAT DEMON WITCH KILLED MY ADEL!"

The Queen turned her back on the King and faced the window of the study. "Demon witch…she will pay. She…her Emperor…ALL OF THE SPADES WILL PAY!"

The king could only stare at his mad wife in disbelief as she sent out her angered words with her hurricane winds. She sent them out of the Hearts Kingdom, over the Lake of Tears, and into the stone castle of the Spades Kingdom. The Empress of Spades sat alone on her throne when the vicious winds burst through the castle doors and screamed into her ears. The Empress gasped in sudden shock at hearing the Queen's mad accusations, and then slowly tightened her expression into a beastly snarl.

"Fine then!" she spat, "If it's blood that the Queen wants…I'll be damned if she doesn't choke on her own!"

With her final decision, the Empress stood and sent for one of her servants to send a messenger phoenix. The fire bird flew back to the Hearts castle and soared through the sky in front of the Queen's window. Behind it's fiery tail, it left trails of smoke spelling the message:

WAR IT IS

NEXT FULL MOON

The Queen smiled cruelly and erased the smoke message with a sharp gust of wind. She turned and walked back to the King and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Nothing to fear, my darling," she smoothly spoke, "we will avenge our daughter."

The Queen turned to leave the study, and the King slowly dropped to his knees. He buried his face in his hands and drew in deep shuddering breaths as the last of the smoky message in the window before him finally wisped away at the mercy of the Queen's powerful winds.


	4. Chapter 4

The Lake of Tears sat still and peaceful in the dead of the night. It watched the night sky with a single milky eye; taking the form of the full moon's reflection high above its surface. The stars glimmered and twinkled, but not in beauty. They shivered with fear.

The moon turned its gaze from the lake to the approaching mobs gathering on opposite sides of the lake's shores. It sprinkled its light to the north, over the glimmering gold of the Heart knights' armor. They strided over the land with heavy, confident steps; never tearing their eyes from the scene ahead.

The moon then turned its gaze over to the South where it feasted its glow upon a large crawling mass of fire ants. Although, the moon wasn't looking upon ants at all. Instead what it saw was the crimson armored army of the Spades; creeping and stalking inside the darkness of the night.

The moon followed the two armies until they met in the center of the Lake of Tears. They stood in a faceoff for a brief moment, and then from the moon's peripheral vision spotted two female figures flying over the armies. One floated by ferocious, yet gentle, hurricane winds, and the other flew on the back of a valiant phoenix. The two women landed in front of their own armies and exchanged conversation. From high above, the moon could not understand what the two women were saying. It could only fathom that they were enemies, and their words were drowned in hostility. At last the Air-One screamed a dreadful cry at the Fire-One, and both disappeared just as quickly as they had entered. Precisely at that moment, the crimson and gold armies charged at each other and engaged in a most gruesome, horrific battle. The moon watched with disbelief as the stars around it cried and dimmed their lights, in hopeless attempts to hide their light away from this nightmare.

The moon awoke the next night only to view the same bloody nightmare that it had witnessed the night before. This time, the moon managed to close its light just a fraction, for the last thing that it wanted to see was millions of souls moving on without reason or purpose.

Every night the moon did the exact same thing as it did before; closing its light just a fraction more each time. Night after night it followed this routine until, finally, the moon shed no light at all. On this night, the moon sighed with relief, and faced the evening peacefully knowing it didn't have to witness the same bloody nightmare.

And then the sun awoke and put the moon to sleep.

The sun yawned and stretched its rays high into the sky as it crawled slowly out of the horizon. It opened its light and gazed around all of Wonderland, wondering what the moon had seen all of these nights that made it shut its light so tight.

And then it had its answer. Over to the South, the sun fixed its gaze upon the land of the Spades; a ruined, demolished, abandoned, blood-streaked ghost-land.

The sun widened its light at the horror. The only house that still stood was the old, weary stone castle. But it barely even stood. Instead it leaned over as if it begged for a cane to cure the pain in its withering spine. The sun spread its light over the ruins. The scarlet blotches, still fresh and wet, twinkled in its gaze. The sun, overwhelmed with deep sadness for this tragedy began to cry. Teardrops of light fell from its rays and landed with a silent _plop_ _plop plop _into the Lake of Tears. The Lake sadly looked up at the crying sun with its bright reflection and generously catched the sun's tears; rippling every time a soft drop of light grazed its still surface.

"You have won. You have had your revenge. Now please, I beg of you, accept my surrender, and allow my kingdom to heal its tremendous wounds."

The Empress now knelt in front of the Queen, her head bowed. She looked tired, worn, and torn by the sight of nearly all her people extinguishing before her eyes. The Queen looked over the Empress, dressed in the crimson velvet she always wore. Her crown was still perched like an iron canary on top of her head…

The Queen stood over the broken Empress. The broken…humiliated…prideless…_mother_ Empress.

The Empress. Still a mother.

The Queen stared at the bowed Empress. Her eyes turned upward to gaze at the Emperor, supportively placing a hand over his broken wife's shoulder.

The Emperor. Still a father. His wife. Still a mother.

The Queen looked back down at the Empress, bowed humiliatingly in front of her. The Queen spoke.

"I accept your surrender, Lilah March, Empress of Spades. But you are wrong on one account."

The Empress lifted her head. "On what account, my Queen?"

The Queen stared straight into those scarlet eyes…those eyes that had bled jealousy…those eyes that had fed anger…those eyes that had stolen her child. The Queen spoke.

"I have not had my revenge."

With one swift motion the Queen unleashed a malicious wind that tore the golden swords and weaponry from the Heart castle walls and thrust a flying dagger straight through the Emperor's throat. The strike flung the Emperor up against the wall, and he collapsed in a lifeless, crimson, bloody heap.

"DAIMON!"

The Empress screamed a blood-curdling cry and spewed malignant fire at the Queen of Hearts. The Queen whipped around and shoved the Empress's attack backwards with her feral winds. With another swift motion the Queen found another dagger and whipped the blade across the Empress's neck. The Empress spun from the blow, and her waves of fire disbanded. The Queen flew in harmony with her tornado and pinned the Empress against the golden wall. The Queen squeezed the Empress's gashed throat as she gagged and choked in her grasp. Drops of scarlet trickled down the Queen's hand as she whispered into the Empress's ear.

"You are going to die, Lilah. Just like your husband. But rest assured, your child will live. I am going to take back what was rightfully mine, and you will die in my hands, by your very own demon blood that took my daughter from me. _Now_ I have won. Now…I have had my revenge."

The Empress gagged once more, and her muscles ceased to move. Her eyes rolled toward the back of her skull, and she drew one last choking breath in the Queen's crimson stained hand.

The Queen threw the Empress's lifeless body onto the golden castle floor and spat on her corpse.

The ferocious winds faded to nothing, and there wasn't a single sound in Wonderland. Not a tree dared to rustle, not a child dared to cry, and not a soul dared to breathe. All of Wonderland sensed that the only hope of the kingdom of the Spades lay now in the tiny heart of a year old baby girl, and all of Wonderland stood in silence at the tragedy.

In fact, it was so silent, that if you listened close enough, you might hear a faint _plop plop plop_ rippling in the Lake of Tears.


	5. Chapter 5

The trees stood still amidst the Wonderland sun. Their branches hummed softly and their leaves vibrated in anticipation as they silently watched a young boy underneath their canopy.

The boy wore a golden cape trimmed with white ruffled ribbons. His hood was drawn over his bowed head, and in his arms he held a single arrow and bow. The arrow was tipped with a golden heart, and his bow was of gold trimming twisted onto a polished, curved white branch. He fastened his arrow into his bow and lifted his head. His arms stretched the arrow into the fine string, and his hand held steady and strong as his boyish muscles tensed. The trees hummed in excitement as the boy drew in a deep, steady breath…and a steady, controlled torrent of wind was emitted from his hands. His fingers released the golden arrow, and the wind carried its swift charge…and guided it right to the center of a carved bullseye. The trees whistled, rustled, and clapped their leaves in applause as the young boy stood straight and removed the hood of his cape from his face.

The trees' clapping faded as they looked down upon the golden-eyed young king of Hearts, Cayden Hargreaves. Their excited humming died down as a presentation of unspoken sadness and pity for the young king. Amidst the silence, Cayden's sharp ears caught a glimpse of angry voices off in the distance. He wafted his winds toward the commotion and beckoned the sounds back toward him. His ears caught recognition of a wild little girl's voice…and his mother's. Cayden released his winds and sighed, "Not again…"

He dreadfully walked over to his golden arrow speared into his carved bullseye. He tugged it out with some difficulty, tied it to his bow, and strolled toward the noisy commotions in the direction of the Hearts golden castle.

The castle suits bowed down to the young king and let him through the golden rod doors of the Hearts castle. Upon entering he made his way swiftly through the halls until he finally came upon the door to the King and Queen's throne room. He took a deep breath and pushed open the gilded doors. Inside, his presence intervened upon a heated argument with his mother, the Queen of Hearts, and his misfit sister, Elizabeth.

"I'm _not_ going back there! Those stupid imbeciles called me a demon!"

"Well, if you keep on scorching them, of course they'll despise you!"

"IT WASN'T MY FAULT!"

With a furious scream, Elizabeth threw about her arms wildly and hurled cannonballs of fire ricocheting off of the golden walls and engulfing the curtains in flames. The Hearts servants scrambled about in panic and urgency to put out the flames.

"You see what you do?" the Queen screamed at the young girl, "I have put up with this tantrum nonsense for eleven years, Elizabeth Hargreaves, and it has only grown worse and worse. This is the last straw young lady; I'm taking you to your Aunt Lorina's!"

"You can't make me do anything!" Elizabeth screamed, "Those stupid Diamonds don't know anything! I won't go! I WON'T!" She stomped her foot in resentment and sent little pinballs of fire scrambling about the castle floor. Cayden had to jump to the side to prevent his foot from being scorched by one of the flames.

"Those 'stupid' Diamonds know plenty enough! And undoubtedly enough to know how to tame a demon little girl!"

Elizabeth stared at the Queen in shock at her retort. And just as suddenly her shock turned into hatred. "FINE! I'd rather be with a family who takes care of their children than be with a mother who yells and sits around on her padded ass all day!"

The Queen raised her hand and slapped Elizabeth across the face. With the help of a sharp wind, pain shot through the young girl's face and the blow sent her reeling to the ground.

"Mother!"

The Queen whipped her head around to stare at her son standing in the golden portal in disbelief. "Cayden! Where in the hell have you been? You've disappeared since sunrise!"

Cayden ignored the furious Queen and rushed to Elizabeth's side. As he brushed hair away from her swollen cheek he finally answered her accusations bitterly, "I came to help my sister prepare for dinner."

The Queen let out a frustrated huff. "Well don't even bother with that. You two go straight to your rooms; you will have no dinner tonight!"

Slowly, Cayden succeeded in helping Elizabeth stand. "No need to worry, mother," he muttered, "I've lost my appetite."

The Queen turned away from the two children and commanded her suits, "Nine! Four! Take these two ungrateful children to their room."

The suits obeyed her orders and began to seize the two youngsters gently by the arm. Elizabeth angrily wriggled out of their grasp. "Get off me! I can do it myself!" With a grotesque gargle from her throat, Elizabeth spat in front of the Queen's feet and left the room in triumph as the little spot of lava slowly corroded the shining golden floor.

Through the door of the children's bedroom came a storming Elizabeth huffing and muttering unintelligible curses under her breath. A reluctant Cayden followed close behind her and faced the suits guarding their door, "Leave us."

The suits reluctantly obeyed and turned from their station, closing the children's door behind them. Cayden let out a heavy sigh and turned to face the back of Elizabeth sitting on the bed with her fists tightly clenching the sheets. Cayden cautiously approached Elizabeth and calmly sat beside her. Not one of the two spoke for a long, uncomfortable time. Finally, Cayden gathered the courage to slowly lift his hand and place it on her shoulder. Elizabeth immediately flinched away, and the young boy sighed once more. He took a good look at the flushed girl next to him, and immediately noticed that her cheek was swelling enormously, and there was a tiny gash where his ferocious mother had struck her.

Elizabeth stayed firmly sitting on the bed as Cayden got up and retreated to the bathroom across the bed chamber. She heard the faint sound of running water and the playful trickling echoed in her ears and teased her frustration. She kept her auburn eyes planted onto her feet as she heard Cayden's footsteps approaching her once again, and settling onto the bed next to her. In his hand he held a small washcloth dampened with cold water.

"This will help stop the swelling," he said as he lifted his hand and gently placed the cloth onto her swollen cheek. Elizabeth winced as the extreme heat of her cheek and that of the temperature of the washcloth battled each other in steaming war. "That's not helping…" Elizabeth muttered.

"It will if you let it." Her brother replied.

"Why should I?" Elizabeth snapped, "I'm a useless demon. All I'm good for is pain. Self-loathing. Black magic. Hatred, mischief, anger, impurity-"

"You're heating the washcloth."

Elizabeth grunted in disgust and smacked Cayden's hand away from her face. The washcloth landed against the wall with a loud _splat_ and Elizabeth curled her fingers into her wild mussy hair and dug into her scalp. Her anger and frustration simmered down into almost nothing, and she was left with an empty void in her heart. What that void was, she could never figure out, but it almost suffocated her as it crawled up into her throat. "If mother hates me so much…why should I even try to fight it?"

Cayden looked at his despairing sister. Did his mother hate her? He didn't know. He had no idea why she is so cruel to Elizabeth. Then again…she was cruel to everyone. Ever since he could remember.

"She doesn't hate you. She just…wants what's best for you. You're her only daughter."

Elizabeth turned her eyes to her brother, "And you're her only son. And you're perfect." Her hands dropped from her head. "I don't belong here Cayden. Nobody likes me. No one smiles at me and bows at my presence the way they do with you. They all turn their heads and whisper behind my back. And mother will never approve of me becoming Queen."

"That's not all true though."

Elizabeth dryly laughed. "Which part?"

"That nobody likes you. I like you. I smile at you. And if you want me to, I'll smile at you every time I see you. Every time you're even in the same room with me I'll never ever stop smiling."

Elizabeth tried to force back a smirk. "Don't you dare. I don't want you giving me nightmares."

"Well, I don't have to smile at you…maybe instead I could just…hug you!"

With that, Cayden tackled Elizabeth, and the two of them, laughing and yelling tackled each other on the bed. Finally, after the two children were out of breath, they laid down side by side gasping and staring at the ceiling.

"I won't ever let anyone hurt you Lizzie. I'll be your bodyguard from now on. For forever."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

Brother and sister, side by side, fell victim to heavy eyelids and the force of fatigue as they engaged in soft, sweet-dreamed slumber.

"How dare she speak to me that way! Can you believe that child?"

The Queen burst through the doors of her bed chamber still enraged from her previous confrontation, while the King sat blankly on their bed. "Did she burn your favorite curtains?" he asked dryly.

"Don't mock me Anthony. This girl has been nothing but trouble to us. Especially now that she has her inherited power. She's spiraling out of control."

"So send her back! She'd probably be a lot happier living with those gargoyles than with your tornado temperaments."

"Now don't be silly Anthony. You and I both know she's better off with us. We're her parents. And as her mother…I need to decide what's best for our daughter."

The Queen frustratingly paced around her bedroom in deep thought, until she came to a realizing halt. "I have no choice. I can't handle her anymore. I must send her over to the Diamonds. Lorina would know what to do."

The King let out a short, hard laugh. "You haven't talked to the Duchess since the war! What makes you think she'll want to see you now? Much less look after your child! Or, so to speak…"

"I'll fly out to the Diamonds castle at dawn. I'll apologize to Lorina, and then ask if she can look after Elizabeth. She must say yes…Feel free to accompany me. I'm sure the Duke would love to enjoy a nice hot cup of tea with you."

"Ahh yes…Matthew and his tea…always loved…parties…" The King trailed off on his words and drifted lazily out of the bed chamber, leaving the Queen alone in the gilded room.

"I take that as a 'no' then."


	6. Chapter 6

In the early faint light of dawn, the Queen of Hearts set out riding on a gust of wind to the Kingdom of the Diamonds. Upon her arrival, the suits guarding the door startled in surprise at the Queen's presence. "Your majesty!" shouted a Five, "what be the pleasure of your visit this morning?"

"I wish to see the Duchess. I hope she is awake at this hour."

"You are in luck your majesty. If you will please follow me."

The Five led the Queen through the courtyard and through the glass doors of the Diamonds castle. When the Queen entered upon the main throne room, the Five bowed to her. "I beg your pardon your majesty, but I believe the Duchess is in the royal garden. I will fetch her for you immediately."

"My utmost gratitude to you, Five."

The Five left the Queen in a hurried stride, and the Queen began slowly pacing and gazing around the throne room. Her eyes turned up to gaze at the magnificent diamond chandelier hanging above her head, and she let out a small chuckle.

"What are you laughing at?"

The Queen turned around swiftly, but saw no one there.

"If you don't mind my asking, that is."

The Queen then finally looked down, and discovered that the voice came from a small girl, no older than nine, dressed in a blue maid's dress with long, springy blonde curls. Her little blue eyes looked straight up at the Queen with the greatest curiosity.

"Why little maid, you nearly frightened me out of my stockings. Where is your caretaker? And have you no manners? You have not yet curtsied in my presence."

The little girl furrowed her blonde brows and cocked her head in confusion. "What's a curtsy?"

The Queen looked at her in confusion and disbelief. "Were you not taught how to curtsy? My my, Lorina certainly has some servants to fire. My dear, curtsying is a gesture that you perform to show respect to your royalty. You see, what you do is put one foot in front of the other, like this. Yes, that's right, now be sure to turn out your toes. Very good, now grab the sides of your skirt, and simply bow your head and bend your knees."

As the Queen demonstrated to the little girl, she followed every direction, and, with wobbling and difficulty, curtsied in front of her majesty.

"Something like that." The Queen chuckled softly at the little girl, who smiled in return.

"Alice! Are you pestering our guest?"

The little girl turned with the brightest smile on her face and ran toward the elegant Duchess entering the throne room. The Duchess laughed as little Alice threw her arms around her waist and embraced her in a squeezing hug. The Queen chuckled to herself, thinking how peculiar the little maid acted. The Duchess gently pried Alice's hands from her and said playfully, "Go run along and fetch your brother and father, and tell them we have guests!"

Alice smiled gleefully and replied, "Yes mother."

The Queen startled. "Mother?" she whispered.

As Alice ran off behind her, the Duchess faced the Queen with her flawless, angelic face, and held out her arms in warming welcome. "Mary…"

"Lorina…" The Queen embraced the Duchess in a hug, with both a smile and a perplexed expression.

"It's been too long, my sister. What has been keeping you all these years?" The Duchess asked casually.

"I've had my hands full for quite some time now, sister. And now, if you'll pardon my asking, did my ears hear you speak of that child as your daughter?"

The Duchess blushed in embarrassment. "Curious little thing isn't she? I hope she didn't pester you too much…I believe we have a great deal of catching up to do."

"Indeed…" The Queen answered back cautiously.

"How about we sit down for some tea in the garden? I'm sure my husband will join us then."

"Certainly." The Queen agreed.

The Duchess and Queen sat on a small glass table in front of a glimmering fountain amidst a garden of blue and white wildflowers. The Duchess poured the Queen a cup of hot tea and asked, "Sugar?"

"You know me. Can never have enough of the stuff."

The Queen began spooning sugar into her tea when she finally asked the Duchess, "So…how is it that you have another child? Unless she is not of your blood…"

The Duchess stopped sipping her tea and set down her cup. "She is of my own womb…but not of royalty blood. Matthew and I shared such success and love in raising my son, Judas, and it came up to the point where…we wanted to do it again…and create a larger family. Not for the sake of power, of course, but for love, Mary! For all the laughter and wonderful times that would be shared between Judas and his sibling, just like the times that you and I shared. And so…Matthew and I decided to make love once more, and…I went to the Lake of Tears to ask the White Rabbit for a chance…out of the pure and good intentions that Matthew and I shared for our family…and…a miracle happened."

The Queen stared at the Duchess with wide eyes. "You don't mean…"

The Duchess nodded with a new light shining in her sparkling blue eyes. "_Clouds_ Mary! Clouds rolled over my head, and spilled drops of water over my face! And then I felt it! I felt the tiny heartbeat within my womb! The White Rabbit blessed our family, Mary."

The Queen took a long, shaking sip of her tea. "And yet this…child is not of…royalty blood?"

"She has no elemental power. And she never will."

"So she can never rule the throne…"

"No…she cannot."

"So she is…useless."

The Duchess looked into her tea with a look of solemnity on her delicate face.

"I'm sorry my mistresses, I believe I heard 'Useless'; I hope I wasn't too late for my calling." The Duke appeared behind the Duchess's back with a mocking smile on his face.

"Matt my love! You finally decided to join us." The Duchess kissed her husband's cheek over her shoulder and introduced the two children standing next to him. "Mary, these are my two children, Judas and Alice Liddell. Children, this is my good friend Mary Hargreaves, the Queen of Hearts."

Alice curtsied with a playful smile on her face. The boy standing next to her exchanged an expressionless nod. His hair was midnight black, like his mother's, but it held the same crazed spirit as his father's hair did. His eyes were strangely calculating beneath the sapphire blue that they held.

The Duchess continued, giggling, "And I believe you must remember this clown of a Duke."

"Not a clown my dear, just simply mad." The Duke winked at the Queen as he took her outstretched hand and kissed it with formality.

"Still wearing the hat I see." The Queen commented on the Duke's unusual top hat perched on his head with little humor.

"The crown never really suited me. Too much…metal. Not enough comfort."

"The Queen and I were just catching up, my love." The Duchess told the Duke, "I just finished telling her the story of how our little Alice came into our lives."

The Duke's face flushed slightly. "I hope you didn't go into too much detail, darling…"

"You mean how you opened a little oyster, Mother, and I was the little diamond inside and I grew into a little baby just like Judas?" Alice asked eagerly.

The Duchess laughed at her daughter's excitement. "Yes, Alice."

The Queen turned to the young boy, unamused by Alice's naivety. "Judas you're eleven years old, am I correct? I have a son, naturally, that's your age. You two should become formally acquainted one day."

The Duke put an arm around his son. "That sounds like fun, right my boy? I'm sure it'd be nice to have a chap to hang around with."

Judas looked up with a confused expression on his face. "Isn't that what you're for, father?"

The Duke laughed heartily. "Forever and always young man."

The Queen kept her eyes on the young boy. "My son has already discovered his elemental power. Surely you must have discovered yours by now. Come, enlighten me."

The Duke's smile faltered and he stared at the Queen in a somewhat nervous manner. The Duchess turned her attention to her son. "Now Judas dear, you don't have to do what the Queen says-"

"-Your soul is corroded. Forever bruised by some old cause. Like a sword that becomes rusted by the sea, or a willow after it's charred from a forest fire. Before your spirit was…gold. But it's bronzed…and stained with…blood."

The Queen stared at Judas in horror and shock. The Duke gave his son a reassuring hug. "Judas my boy, why don't you go take your sister to play by the pond."

Judas looked up at his father in silent understanding and stayed for one last ruffling of his hair before he took Alice's hand and guided her away from the adults.

The Duchess turned back to the speechless Queen. "Judas…has a rare gift, Mary. He has no power to control water…instead he was gifted with the power to…detect spiritual magnitudes."

The Queen's eyes widened. "He is a son of prodigy!"

"Yes."

"Why haven't you told me this? About any of this?"

The Duke chimed in, "With all due respect my Queen…you haven't exactly been present for the past eleven years."

"I know you came here for a reason, Mary." The Duchess looked at the Queen with sad, begging eyes. "Just please tell me what you need, and I would be more than pleased to help you."

The Queen studied the two carefully and took a deep breath. "I have a second child as well. A daughter of eleven years, just like my son and yours. Her name is Elizabeth Hargreaves but…she was…before…Elizabeth…March."

The Duchess gasped. "Oh my…Mary, what have you done?"

"I raised her. I opened up my arms, just like you did, and took her into my care for the good of her and my family. But now…she's become more…resistant. And with her new elemental ability I simply don't know how to control her anymore. So Lorina…I ask you a favor, as a sister, to open your kind, beautiful heart once more…and help my daughter learn control and peace."

The Duchess sat debating the Queen's favor for a few moments. "I really…don't know, Mary…I-"

"Please." The Queen took the Duchess's hand. "Please, Lorina. Just until she's fifteen. She should be mature enough then."

The Duchess looked at her best friend's pleading eyes, and then at her husband's own hesitant gaze. But with one silent exchange of eye contact, the two Diamonds came upon an agreement.

The Duchess whispered, "Alright."


	7. Chapter 7

Cayden awoke alone in his bed. He saw that the sun was high in the sky and realized that he had slept in late. His eyes glanced over to Elizabeth's bed only to find it empty. Slightly puzzled, Cayden arose from his bed and left his bedroom. He walked down the long hallways until he came upon the Queen's chamber. Before he could step inside, the doors opened and out appeared Elizabeth. Her auburn eyes made contact with Cayden's , and he suddenly became aware of the gravity of the situation. Elizabeth turned away her frustrated gaze and brushed past Cayden, leaving him in wonder. Cayden proceeded into the Queen's room. His mother turned and looked at him. Beside her were a Six and a Three, grabbing luggage bags that lay at the Queen's feet.

"Elizabeth is going to live with the Duke and Duchess of Diamonds for the time being" the Queen said. "I want you to freshen up and meet us on the carriage to deliver your sister."

Cayden stared at his mother for a moment, trying to read into her empty golden eyes. Finally, with the slightest whisper, he replied, "Yes mother."

They boarded the carriage, and the Queen stood in the driver's seat. She thrust her arms out and a gentle, yet forceful wind pushed the carriage into rolling motion. Cayden sat silently next to his sister; neither of them said a word, or even dared to look at each other.

At last, the horseless carriage came upon the silver gates of the Diamonds mansion, with which white roses bloomed everywhere. Elizabeth's curious auburn eyes searched the vicinity with a mixture of wonder and slight disgust. She thought with an inner grimace, "There should be more color around here…"

After the suits opened the gates for the royal occupants, there was a visible cluster of distinguished persons standing at the doorway of the great glass and silver mansion. As they came closer, Elizabeth could identify the Duke and Duchess, along with a boy, around her age, and a younger girl. Even Elizabeth could not help gasping at the Duchess's beauty, like that of an angel with her ebony hair, porcelain face, and sapphire diamonds. The Duke beside her wore a distinctive top hat, which strangely complimented his untamed platinum blonde hair. The boy had features like that of his father, yet his hair was the same black sheen as his mother's. His eyes were a deep royal blue, and seemed to lead Elizabeth into some dark, oceanic abyss. The young girl held herself in a curious stance, with her blonde curls framing her doll-like face in naïve playfulness.

The carriage reached a sudden halt and jerked Elizabeth out of her observational trance. The Queen descended from the carriage steps and approached the Duchess, giving her a warm and delicate hug. Elizabeth wondered how long they knew each other, and exactly how patient the Duchess should be if she could stand being friends with someone like her mother, when Cayden interrupted her thoughts. "Lizzie. Are you coming?"

The carriage door was open, and her brother was already on the ground, offering to take her hand to help her down the steps. Elizabeth ignored his chivalrous gesture and jumped out of the carriage with a solid thud. Her unladylike action received attention from the Queen, who gave her a slight glare as she explained to the Duchess, "Lorina, this is my daughter, Elizabeth Hargreaves. Please don't let her…unique behavior tamper with your first impressions."

"Not at all." The Duchess smiled and greeted Elizabeth. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. You know, both you and your brother are the same age as my son, Judas. You two should have plenty to talk about during your stay with us." The Duchess motioned over to the boy, Judas, who bowed at the mentioning of his name. "Speaking of your brother, I don't believe we've been formally introduced." The Duchess turned her attention to Cayden, who stood next to Elizabeth.

"Cayden Anthony Hargreaves, your highness." Cayden bowed to the Duchess.

"Pleasure to meet you good sir." The Duchess curtsied at the young boy, "Such a fine young gentleman your mother has raised you to be."

A small little girl approached the Duchess from behind and tugged on her dress. The Duchess laughed and put an arm around the small child. "And this is my daughter, Alice."

Alice curtsied, "How do you do?" she asked cleverly.

Cayden smiled at the little girl and bowed back at her "How do you do?"

"I asked you first!"

Cayden laughed at her playfulness, but his smile faltered at the sound of the Queen clearing her throat. "Come now Cayden, bid farewell to your sister. Your father should be expecting us back by sunset."

Cayden looked back at his mother, almost imploringly, but soon realized it was no use. He turned to Elizabeth, who purposely avoided his eyes. He stood there for an awkward moment, not knowing quite what to say to his sister.

"Hey...I'll always be your bodyguard, remember? I won't let anyone hurt you. I promise." Cayden put his hand out for Elizabeth to shake, as a seal of his promise. Elizabeth took a look at her brother's hand, and then into his golden eyes. Suddenly she threw her arms around him and embraced him in a tight hug. She whispered in his ear, "Forever?"

Cayden whispered back to her, "Forever."

Her brother gave her one last smile before returning to the carriage and riding off into the distance. Elizabeth never took her auburn eyes from her brother as he and the Queen rode off into the distance. Back on the carriage, the Queen spoke to Cayden, "This isn't permanent, you know. I will have you return to the Diamond mansion on a regular basis to check up on Elizabeth and report her status back to me. Is that understood?"

Cayden replied with restrained disgust to his mother, "Why don't you just do it yourself?"

The Queen repeated her question more sternly, "Is that understood?"

Cayden swallowed all of the revolting, unintelligible words that poisoned his mind down his throat, and whispered coldly, "Yes mother."


	8. Chapter 8

Elizabeth followed the Duchess down the reflective glass hallways of the Diamond mansion, until they reached a certain chamber.

"This is where you'll be sleeping." The Duchess smiled down at Elizabeth and opened the door. "I apologize if it's smaller than what you're used to. This room used to house our chambermaids, but Mr. Liddell and I made a few arrangements."

Elizabeth took a survey of the quaint room with blank disinterest. "There's no color."

The Duchess pursed her lips in thought, "Well…perhaps we'll just have to fix that one of these days." She then motioned for the suits behind her to start bringing in Elizabeth's things. "You shouldn't be too lonely around here. Alice and Judas's chamber rooms are just down the hall. And if you ever need me or Mr. Liddell, we're up the main staircase, to the left, and all the way down the hall. Or, if you ever get lost, just ask someone to show you the way…Is there anything else you need help with?"

Elizabeth stared blankly at the suits unpacking her things and said nothing to the Duchess. After a moment's pause of no response, the Duchess simply replied, "Well…I'll be in the garden if you need me…"

When she left the room, Elizabeth insisted that the suits leave, and she could unpack her own things. After several strange looks, the suits simply shrugged and left the young girl alone. Elizabeth plopped onto her new bed and stared at the silver ceiling above her.

Suddenly, a little doll-like face surrounded by bouncing curls eclipsed her vision. "What are you looking at?"

Elizabeth sat up in surprise and stared at the curious little girl. Finally, she replied, "Nothing."

The little girl furrowed her eyebrows. "Well that doesn't make any sense. How can you look at nothing?"

"I didn't mean it that literally!"

"Well how else could you mean it?"

"I meant…oh, nevermind." Elizabeth sighed at the little girl and then asked, "What's your name again?"

"Alice." She answered with a smile.

"How old are you Alice?"

"I'm nine and a half moons exactly."

Elizabeth smirked at her childlike humor.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing."

Alice frowned once more. Suddenly her face lit up with a brilliant idea. "Do you want to explore with me?"

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at Alice. "Explore?"

"Sure! There's lots of things to see around here. This place is ginormous! You haven't even seen the library or Mother's garden yet!"

Elizabeth stared at the excited little girl and processed her offer. Finally, coming up with the excuse that she has nothing better to do, she replied "Sure, why not?"

Alice led Elizabeth down every hallway, labeling every room that came into their sight. She let Elizabeth come into her room, and she showed her all of her most prized possessions. Elizabeth gazed around the child's room, and noticed that the walls were completely littered with various drawings.

"It's what I like to do best besides exploring and playing with my father or brother or mother in the garden. I especially like to draw animals. Those are my favorite. I keep begging Mother to take me to the Kingdom of Clovers, but she says she'll only take me when I've accomplished something really really special. But I have no idea what that is yet, and she won't tell me."

Elizabeth drifted her eyes past each individual picture. "These are really good for your age, Alice. What's this one right here?"

"Oh! I read about that one in Father's library. It's called a dragon. Apparently it has fangs and claws and wings and it spits out fire. They're supposed to be really vicious, but I've never seen one."

Elizabeth looked over the drawing of the creature and hummed with interest. Suddenly Alice took her hand and urged her forward. "Come on! There's lots more to show you."

The two girls continued down the hallway and stopped in front of a closed door. "That's Judas's room." Alice said. "But he doesn't like anyone to go in there. Something he calls 'privacy'."

They ascended the main silver spiral staircase, and came upon two intricately decorated double doors. "This is the library." Alice informed Elizabeth as she opened the doors to an enormous room filled with shelves upon shelves of books. Elizabeth gasped in awe at the sight. Alice giggled at her reaction. At the far end of the room, there was a large glass window with silk curtains and furniture. Alice glanced over at the furniture and frowned. "I was sure Judas would be here…I guess he's in the ballroom practicing piano."

Elizabeth turned to Alice. "Ballroom?"

On cue, the two girls heard the soft echo of a piano melody. Alice took Elizabeth's hand once again and tugged her onto the lower level of the Diamond mansion. The piano melody grew louder and louder until they finally found the source behind two intricate double doors, similar to that of the library. Elizabeth took it upon herself to push open the doors, and inside she discovered a grand ballroom, decorated with glass and silver chandeliers with sapphire diamonds. Elizabeth turned to the far right of the room, where she discovered a boy playing solemnly on a grand piano. Alice stayed by the door, watching with curiosity, as the sweet melody lured Elizabeth forward toward the piano. Before she realized it, she was standing next to Judas and the piano. Even at her close distance, the boy never hesitated in his music. He would occasionally close in eyes, and just let his fingers drift across the keys. He played beautifully, with ease, and Elizabeth was mesmerized by the melody.

Finally, the song ended, and the boy removed his hands from the black and white keys. He turned his face to Elizabeth, his deep blue eyes, staring into her. He spoke. "May I help you with anything?"

Elizabeth turned away and changed her expression to dismissive. "No, nothing."

Judas eyed her curiously. "I assume my sister was showing you around the mansion."

Hearing her cu, Alice jumped in between Elizabeth and Judas. "I was just showing her the library when we heard you play. What was that song called?"

Judas smiled at his sister and responded, "Untitled."

Alice furrowed her small blonde eyebrows. "What does that mean?"

"That means that you and Miss Elizabeth should go find Father out in the garden."

Alice's face brightened at the idea, and she took Elizabeth's hand once more and tugged her out of the grand ballroom. Elizabeth heard the boy's echoing voice behind her, "I'll see you at dinner, Miss Elizabeth."

At the back of the Diamond mansion, the Duchess cared for a beautiful flower garden. All around white roses, lilies, and daisies bloomed in the Wonderland sun, and they whistle happily in the bushes with the sound of running water from the numerous glass fountains that decorated the garden. Elizabeth gazed around with silent awe as Alice led her on through the maze of flower bushes.

"I come and play here all the time. Mother says that if I listen close enough, the flowers will talk to me. Sometimes I can hear them, and we laugh and play together. They can be really silly."

Elizabeth looked at Alice with a confused expression on her face. "You're a very strange girl, Alice."

Alice stopped and took special interest in a particular white rose. "My father just says I'm special. Besides, you're the strange one."

Elizabeth was immediately offended. "Excuse me?"

"I've been here ever since Mother picked me out of an oyster when she was walking on the shore. I was just a little diamond then, but then I grew into a little baby, just like my brother. But you are a stranger. So you must be strange. That's logic."

"That's absurd."

"Ah, but you know, absurdity is the logic of all who are wise."

The two girls turned to see the Duke of Diamonds standing behind them. "And of all who are special as well." He winked at Alice, and she smiled gleefully in response. "Come now you two," he continued, "It's time for dinner."


	9. Chapter 9

The dining hall was no less mesmerizingly beautiful than the other grand rooms in the Diamond mansion. In the center was a beautiful glass and silver table, with the Duke sitting at the very end of it. To his left were the Duchess and Alice. To his right were Judas and Elizabeth. The maids delivered the dinner to the table and revealed what was hidden on silver platters. Elizabeth reached for her food, but the Duchess's words stopped her.

"Shall we announce our gratitude before this meal?"

Elizabeth looked around in question as the Diamonds joined hands around the table. Alice grabbed Elizabeth's hand that was still outstretched for her food, and beside her, Judas cleared his throat. Elizabeth saw Judas's hand waiting patiently for hers. After a moment's hesitation she completed the circle, and the Duchess continued, "Judas dear, will you do the honor?"

Judas nodded at his mother's request, closed his eyes and bowed his head. He spoke, "On behalf of the Diamond kingdom and our royal blood we thank thee, White Rabbit, for our health, our love, and our unity. May we rejoice in your generosity and mercifulness with this meal. With peace and love."

Judas's hand that held Elizabeth's suddenly grew cold as ice, yet it radiated a certain extreme heat into Elizabeth's body. Her breath caught in her throat as the two opposite extremities of temperature engulfed her, and her eyes became flooded with a strange white light. Then she heard a voice, like a feather resting against the still surface of a lake. It was the voice of a woman that echoed in her mind.

"_Anger is ignorance Elizabeth March._

_ Never decline a brand new start_."

The strange voice faded and Elizabeth's mind returned to the present reality. Her heartbeat still pulsed at a rapid pace in her throat.

"…ou all right?"

As her normal hearing sharpened up once again, Elizabeth looked up to see the duchess's concerned expression on her beautiful face.

"Miss Elizabeth…"

She turned to Judas, whose hand she realized she was still clenching in an uncomfortable and unpredictably tight manner.

"If you could please be so kind as to let go of my hand," Judas continued, "so that I may still have it in tact to consume my meal with."

He offered a small smile and Elizabeth immediately released his hand and looked away to hide her flushed cheeks, and irritation at herself for behaving so strangely.

The duke looked at his wife with question on his face, but with a brief confused dismissal of the odd event he cleared his throat and announced, "Dig in children."

Elizabeth transfixed a sneaky eye onto her plate. Atop of it was a strange assemblage of colorful fruits and vegetables, some that she did not recognize, and to the side was toasted bread with an arrangement of different jams and butters. Elizabeth plucked a violet fruit from her plate and brought it cautiously up to her mouth. She dug her teeth into half of the small fruit, and violet juice immediately squirted out onto the wall in front of her. There was a small giggle from Alice, who was the only person that saw Elizabeth's incident. However a sharp glare from Elizabeth turned Alice's smiling gaze back into her food. Elizabeth's attention turned to the gushing fruit, still in her hand, and she plopped the whole of it into her mouth. Her eyes widened as the flavor sank into her tongue and her body in response craved for more. Soon after she began digging through her plate, searching for more of that same delicious fruit, and gobbling it down with satisfaction and craving. After a few minutes of eating and digging, Elizabeth came to realize that she had eaten all of the violet fruits on her plate and let out a small grunt of disappointment. She looked up from her plate to find Alice, mid bite, staring at her with that curious expression of hers. She turned to her right and discovered that every Diamond at the table was, indeed, staring at her as well. Her gaze fell down at her hands to discover that violet juice stained her skin. She then realized that every other hand at the table was spotless and holding some sort of utensil. Elizabeth bit her lip and mentally cursed herself. She then arose from her seat and swiftly walked out of the dining hall without a word.

The duchess cautiously glided across the glass tile of the hallway floors. She stopped in front of the closed door to Elizabeth's new room. She could see from the frosted glass of that door a single glowing orange light within the room. She sighed softly to herself and silently opened the door. Inside, dresses, garments, and other necessities from Elizabeth's luggage were strewn across the room. Her bed was no longer neatly made, and certain things were slightly scorched or charred. Elizabeth herself sat on the edge of her mussed bed. Her hands were engulfed in flame, and every moment or so a single laser of fire would lash out and burn off a petal of a white rose that crept up on a vine through her window. Elizabeth acknowledged the duchess's presence without turning her head, "It doesn't hurt. My skin never burns. The stain won't come out."

Another petal burned to a crisp.

The duchess turned her attention to Elizabeth's hands, which, underneath the flame, were still visibly a hint of a distinctive violet. She gently approached Elizabeth and sat down on the bed next to her. She asked politely, "May I see your hands?"

Another petal.

"I really do want to help you Elizabeth. I know that none of this has been easy for you. But stubbornness and anger will never make any of this easier or less painful."

"_Anger is ignorance_."

The flames slowly died down on Elizabeth's hands, until finally the last of the glow died. The duchess smiled and gently held out her hands. Elizabeth hesitated, but after a moment she cautiously placed her hands on the duchess's. The duchess's hands glowed a soft sapphire blue, and water flowed from her skin onto Elizabeth's. The young girl's eyes widened as her hands became engulfed in cool waves of water, and after a few moments the violet stain on her skin washed away. The duchess let go of her hands and Elizabeth eyed them with confound wonder. The duchess smiled once more, "Whatever needs fixing, we're here to help repair it."

Judas strolled beside the rose hedges of the diamond garden. The white petals reflected the light of the shining crescent moon above. Amidst his steady steps he contemplated the obscure moment that he shared with Elizabeth at the dinner table. Her strange encounter with some sort of otherworldly force had flowed from him into her. Everything that she had heard from the echoing woman's voice, he heard as well.

He stroked the palm of his hand that Elizabeth had clasped onto and pondered one peculiar word that was unheard of in Wonderland. "March…" he murmured. What did it mean?

Suddenly he heard a small chirp behind him and the sound of the frantic fluttering of wings. Judas turned and widened his eyes at the sight of a small baby bluebird on the ground, still too young to be able to fly. The young diamond furrowed his brow in confusion. Club children usually couldn't transform into their animal forms until they were at least seven moons old. This bluebird could be only one moon at the very most. He stared at the fluttering infant and then looked around him for some sort of indication of where the bird may have come from. "Where are your parents…?" He wondered aloud. Judas stared at the baby bird and then discovered a yellow glow of light growing in front of him and the bird. After a moment he realized that the source of the glow was actually coming from behind him, and Judas turned. He gasped in horror as he became face to face with a monstrous machine with glowing eyes and some sort of iron grill in its front. It sped toward him on some kind of large, black wheels and emitted the sound of a loud, angry horn. Judas covered his face with his arms as the machine crashed into him, and sped out into the distance behind him, as if Judas had never been there.

Judas removed his arms from his face and was astonished to find that he was unharmed and untouched. The young boy instinctively put a hand over his heart and took in a few deep breaths to try and steady his pulse. All the while, all he could wonder was what in the world that strange ghost machine was. Judas's ears detected a small suffocated sound behind him, and he turned. In front of him lay the baby bluebird, now mangled and flattened by the speeding machine. Judas watched in horror and sorrow as the little infant's chest ceased to move up and down, and its last breath escaped its beak. Immediately, a strange white light glowed from the bird and engulfed its entire lifeless body. Judas's wide eyes stared as the light encased the bird, and the disappeared, taking the infant's body with it.

Then all was dark and still again. Judas stood alone once more, with only the light from the crescent moon to accompany him and his questioning thoughts.


End file.
